Hello
by Scottie-Pet
Summary: Gary Harrison, now a missionary for the church of Latter Day Saints, runs into Stan Marsh in Orlando. Emotional conflict on both ends transpires.


**Hello**

* * *

Ding dong.

Gary Harrison pulled back the door with a grin firmly planted upon his visage.

Okay, so he was just a bit peeved. Not disheartened, certainly not, but annoyed - yes. His mission partner, Elder Blade, after claiming he had to use the restroom, he disappeared and didn't return to Gary. Which really broke the rules, but Gary wasn't entirely concerned. Him and Steve, well, they didn't get along so well sometimes. Gary was pleasant among most people, but in contrast to other Mormons... He didn't come quite up to par with how cheerful they all were. Steve had his own problems, and neither of them were really good at communicating.

They hadn't had any luck that day with placements, either. Their mission in Orlando was turning out to be a total bust, fruitless entirely. No one there was willing to listen. He almost wished he'd been sent to a third world country, where people were admittedly more desperately grappling for some semblance of hope and therefore more interested in what they had to offer. Here in Orlando, people just called Mormons _cultists_. It was quite off putting.

He blinked in excitement as he heard footsteps approaching the door, straightening his posture and gripping his book of Mormon a bit tighter. This one, this one _had_ to be something. He could just _feel_ it.

The door opened and Gary was a bit taken back by whom he was greeted with. The familiarity (and attractiveness) of this man was palpable - he had a strong jaw and sharp features, a bit of stubble lining his face, thick ebony brows and messy hair. His striking blue eyes bore into Gary, but really, it was the hat that took Gary off guard. A blue and red poofball hat, bringing back memories of when Gary was a kid and he'd befriended...-

Well, it didn't matter. Gary cleared his throat, realizing he'd yet to say anything to the man who was now openly scrutinizing him.

"Hello, my name is Elder Harrison, and I would like to share with you the most amazing book in the whole world." He presented a cheesy smile, gesturing to the book of Mormon in his hand.

The man's eyes dipped down and he took a look at the book, arching a brow, before he looked back to Gary, and just stared. There was momentary silence, Gary continuing to smile awkwardly as the man just stood there with a deadpan. Gary realized that he must've been waiting for him to continue, and his smile brightened further. Maybe this really _could_ go somewhere!

"It's a book of Jesus, about America, a long _long_ time ago! If you'd just let me in, I could-"

"Mormonism, huh?" The man interrupted with a chuckle, dipping his head as he looked down to the ground, his voice a husky gruff that made Gary's eyes widen and heart skip a beat. Oh no, he had such a smooth voice... "Yeah, I know all about it."

"You do? That's... Great!" Gary fumbled over his words.

He then looked back up at Gary. "It's a load of bull." He blatantly declared, before his eyes narrowed. "...Do I know you?"

Gary's mouth opened and closed, not sure how to take those two sentences. "I..." He sputtered, eyes glancing up to the poofball hat and then back to the man's eyes.

_He recognizes me... Could it be?_

"...Harrison." His expression turned sour. "..._Gary_ Harrison?"

Gary's eyes widened. "S-Stan Marsh?" _Oh my goodness, it is!_

Stan squinted, smirking in an almost sardonic manner. "You've gotta be kidding me. It's really you."

"It sure is!" Gary exclaimed, almost hopping up and down in excitement. Stan Marsh! How pleasant it was to see a familiar face - never mind that he and Stan hadn't spoken since the fourth grade. "You've grown up to be so..." He faltered, realizing that he'd almost referred to Stan as a '_looker_'. Ugh. "...Tall! I can't believe that you remember me?"

Stan laughed, but there was something awfully unkind about his voice. "How could I forget what a little douche you were, trying to convert me way back then?" His smile faded entirely into a glare. "...Trying to convert me even now."

Gary's happy expression was wiped completely into shock. "Oh no, Stan, I... I mean, I wasn't trying to convert you before, and besides, this is kind of my _job_-"

"Bull." Stan leaned in, hissing. "_Shit_."

Gary's heart sped up, and he stared in shock, before his eyebrows furrowed. Stan sneered back at him, and any semblance of _oh geez he's cute_ that Gary had been thinking was wiped entirely away. What was with this unnecessary cynicism?

"Get the fuck off of my property. I moved to Orlando to get away from shitty people like you." Stan snapped.

"...What _happened_ to you, Stan? You used to be so..." Gary trailed off.

"So _what_, Gary?" Stan snarled. "_Happy?_ Well, what the fuck do you expect? Not everyone can be so God damn chipper all the time. Some of us actually don't have our heads up our asses, like you." He practically spat.

Gary's lips tightened into a frown. "What happened to you?" He repeated, his voice hurt.

Stan laughed bitterly, leaning against the door frame as he rolled his eyes. He kept chortling for a moment, before his face turned enraged again, and he grabbed Gary by the collar and spun him around, forcing him inside. Gary stumbled in surprise, catching himself just before he fell. He looked up, and then around the vicinity.

Stan's carpet was brown, various stains and trash littering the floor, most of which were empty bottles of alcohol. There was a beat up leather couch, missing a cushion and torn in another, an empty box of pizza leaning against it. There was a small TV across from it, and there was a container of half-eaten Chinese food spilling onto the top. Dirty clothes were hanging off of the bookshelf, which was pretty much empty otherwise. Gary couldn't see the kitchen, but he saw the corner of what appeared to be a pile of garbage in the door. There were stairs that led upstairs, which honestly seemed to be the cleanest part of the house that Gary could see.

Gary sturdied himself, trying to find something nice to say. "It looks..."

"Like shit." Stan finished for him. He was still leaning against the door frame, scowling deeply at the Mormon.

Gary turned to him, eyebrows creased in mild concern. "Stan..."

"My dad died in the sixth grade." Stan flipped his hair. "He got into a car accident. My friends got tired of me always being a downer, not like I can _help_ suffering from manic depression. When I came out as bisexual, my mom and sister stopped talking to me, and I developed a hoarding problem. Now, I've got a shitty pizza delivery job, and no friends, except Kyle, who calls me once every few months to see if I'm still alive. All I do is drink my fucking life away."

Gary stared at him in shock, wibbling as he bit his lip. "I'm... I'm so sorry."

Stan laughed coldly. "You think that fixes anything? You think _anything_ you can say to me will fix anything? Fuck you, _Elder Harrison_."

Gary stared at the broken man for several moments. He felt strongly inclined to help him, to do something. Anything.

"...Stan, let's go somewhere." The words were tumbling from his mouth, determined, before he could even process what he was saying.

This _did_ surprise Stan, who looked at him curiously. "...What?"

A smile hatched onto Gary's face. "Come on, I want to take you somewhere."

"Gary," Stan groaned. "I don't care about your shitty religion. Just get out, back into your happy little life and leave me alone."

Gary shook his head. "This has nothing to do with that. This has to do with me wanting to make you feel better, at least for a little bit."

Stan stared at him for a few moments, eyebrows raising, and Gary could've sworn that his cheeks turned a bit red. He then returned to glaring. "Fine, not like I have anything else to do."

Gary smiled, now confident. He reached out, grasping Stan's hand, before he led him out of the dank, messy house. He walked down a few blocks, still firmly grasping Stan's hand. Stan seemed off put by this connection, but he didn't do anything to halt it, which Gary was grateful for. Holding Stan's hand felt pretty nice, comforting for the both of them. Gary told himself that it was _only_ that - after all, he was straight now. Counseling had made him so. Nope. No gayness left in Gary Harrison, that was for sure.

So... He had nothing to worry about, even if Stan was dashingly attractive _and_ queer.

When they finally found Gary's car, a little blue Prius, Gary opened the door for Stan and allowed him to sit in the passenger seat. Starting the car, he wistfully glanced around. It didn't look like Elder Blade would be coming around anytime soon. No matter - Steve would probably text him eventually, so Gary would just pick him up then. With that in mind, he began to drive for a bit.

"So, where are we heading, _oh holy one?_" Stan grumbled, looking out the window. "Not Universal Studios, I hope. I hate that shitty place."

Gary glanced over, noting how partial Stan was to the adjective 'shitty'. "Nope. I have a little place I'd like to show you... Sometimes I go here when I need to pray."

Stan gagged, and Gary couldn't help but smile - it was almost an automatic reaction to smile instead of frown when something bothered him. He rose a brow at Stan.

"It's not like _you'll_ have to pray, silly." He chuckled.

Stan shot him a look. "As long as you don't, I'll be fine. I really don't want to think about anymore religious shit."

Gary chuckled. "You really like that word."

He turned off of the main road and onto a dirt one, eliciting an expression of confusion from Stan. "You're not leading me somewhere to kill me, right?"

"You know that's against my religion, don't you?" Gary smiled, patting the book of Mormon that was tucked neatly away into his pocket.

"What?" Stan snorted. "That's the only thing holding you back?"

Gary sent him a wink, to which Stan blinked, but then even proceeded to smile. It was a smile that made Gary feel warm inside.

They continued on the bumpy dirt road for a bit, before Gary's car slowed to a stop. He parked it right there on the secluded road, which apparently was unused enough for no one else to come along. Gary wiped his brow and got out of the car, running around to get Stan's door. Stan sent him a look at the gesture, scoffing as he took a step outside of the car and looked around.

They were surrounded by thick foliage, and right off of the road, the dirt transitioned into sand, a clearing coming around. There was a small pocket of water that the sand met, the opposing side being surrounded by more trees. Stan blinked, taking in the scenery. There was an air of seclusion about the area, as though no one else ever came here. Gary smiled broadly at Stan, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"...What is this place?"

"I found it a few months ago when I moved here... Turns out no one else ever visits. Come on, the water's pretty clean!"

But something made him pause._ Oh my gosh, why'd I think it would be a good idea to swim? What if he thinks I'm gay? What if I start to have bad thoughts? Oh goodness gracious..._

_...No... Wait...Yeah, a swim sounds nice right about now. What am I thinking? I don't _have_ to be nervous around other men anymore. It's gone - the homosexual part of me is gone._

He began to step forward, unbuttoning his shirt and loosening his tie. Stan stared after him, gawking as he watched Gary effectively undress. He folded his clothes neatly and set them on a rock, before he turned to Stan, now only clad in his boxers. He blinked and tilted his head.

"...Stan? Come on, it really is nice."

Nothing to worry about.

Stan seemed conflicted. "Gary... This is kind of..."

A laugh bubbled from Gary's throat as he made a beckoning motion, ignoring Stan's protest, and slipped into the clear water. It was just two guys having a bit of fun together. Nothing wrong with that.

Nothing to worry about at all.

Stan seemed to stand there awkwardly for a few moments, his face turning red as Gary submerged himself and then came back up, his body dripping with cool, refreshing water. Gary watched his adam's apple bob up and down as he averted his eyes, but then, he began to strip as well. If Gary didn't know any better, he'd say that Stan was having sinful thoughts.

_He's not thinking what you think he's thinking, Gary. Calm down. Nothing is wrong with this picture._ But then, Gary watched the almost tantalizing skin appear with every fluid motion, Stan's stomach revealed, then his arms, and then his legs. Gary openly stared at his pale flesh, before he looked back up to Stan's face. Stan was watching him in return, and for a moment, they just stayed like that, staring at each other.

Finally, Stan stepped forth, hesitating one final time, before he finally completely allowed himself to approach the pond and finally - _finally_ - join Gary.

"Oh wow, this is... Kind of nice," Stan admit, saying something positive for the first time since Gary had seen him.

Gary felt accomplished at this sentiment and nodded, wading for several moments as Stan got used to the pond itself. Suddenly, an amused expression pushed it's way onto Gary's face, and he splashed Stan. Stan sputtered, blinking as he jumped, then looked at Gary accusingly.

"Hey, what the-"

Gary was practically giggling at his look of surprise, splashing him again. Stan grinned, his eyebrows angry but his expression altogether playful, as he splashed back, diving after Gary. He tried to pull Gary under the surface, but only managed in dunking himself under, to which Gary dived down and wrestled him underwater for a bit. They pulled up, laughing, and Stan's eyes twinkled with sheer joy that made Gary's skin tingle.

Stan pushed at him and splashed him, to which Gary guffawed and splashed back. Stan attempted to tackle him in the water, which was more like an effective hug than anything else. As their chests slid against each other, Gary felt his breath hitch, and reminded himself that he was straight, straight, _straight_. Even as Stan sent him a flash of gratefulness and ran a hand down Gary's spine, his knee finding it's way between Gary's thighs as they fumbled around in the water. He. Was. _Straight_.

_Being gay is a sin, being gay is a sin, being gay is a sin._ Gary swallowed thickly as Stan's skin glimmered in the sunlight and he dove backwards, doing an underwater flip before surfacing again. _Even if you're gay for someone so... Handsome..._

Stan and he stared at each other for a few moments, and Gary thought he saw something of sincere appreciation swimming in Stan's eyes. Stan's lips formed a genuine smile, so far away from the stuffy cynical man he'd been about an hour ago.

"Dude..." Stan breathed. "Thank you for taking me out here. I seriously needed to get out of my house."

Gary smiled, forgetting his internal dilemma about sexuality and recalling why he'd actually done this. "It's always my pleasure to help out a friend, Stan."

Stan eyed him wryly. "How are we friends? We haven't spoken for like, a million years."

"Actually, it's been about ten years." Gary thought on this for a moment. "But I've always considered you a friend, Stan."

"Even when you told me to suck your balls?" Stan chuckled.

"Yeah, even then." Gary laughed, his face turning red as he was reminded of how he'd said something so harsh.

Stan laughed too, and his eyes twinkled in delight as he just gazed at Gary happily. "...Thanks Gary."

Gary shrugged, noting that the water was causing him to drift a bit to the side. "Anytime."

Stan paddled forward and pulled Gary into a hug. Gary's breath caught in his throat as he paused, but returned the hug. Now that they weren't playing - with the water splashing around them chaotically - and they were in a calm, unmoving hug, Gary could really _feel_ all of Stan's wet, warm skin, pressing against his own. His flesh rubbed against Gary's in a way that made alarm bells go off in Gary's head. He was beginning to warm up in a way that he knew God wouldn't like.

_Oh no._

"Uh!" Gary's voice cracked as he suddenly pulled away, taking Stan off guard. "I have some... Towels in the back... Of my car."

Stan looked disappointed and it almost broke Gary's heart, so he cleared his throat, reminding himself that he had to crush any sinful thoughts, because this was about _Stan_, not him.

"But," Gary continued, licking his lips and averting his eyes from Stan's now even more tantalizing form. "We can stay a bit longer. Sound good?"

Stan brightened in approval. He dove underwater again and for a moment, Gary was a bit disoriented, until Stan came up right behind him, locking him in another tackle hug. Gary fell forward, and they both submerged into the water, until Stan pushed them back up. Gary shook the water from his hair and gave Stan, who was still firmly clutching Gary, an intrigued look. Stan had a grin on his face as he kept his arms firmly placed around Gary, who was trying to fight off any arousal that was threatening to pervade his system.

"What are you doing?" Gary breathed out, his voice hoarse.

Stan didn't answer for a moment, and his fingers tingled over the Mormon's skin. "Gary," he muttered. "How has your life been? I told you about mine."

Gary struggled away from Stan, trying to keep inconspicuous as he laughed, a bit higher than he should've. "Well... I don't know. I'm now an missionary for the latter day saint church, and I was placed in Orlando to try and convert people. I still call my family every day. I mean, I have a missionary partner, but he's..." He searched his mind for something nice to say about Steve Blade. "...Well, he's a very driven guy. A little girl crazy, though." He chuckled.

Stan mulled over this. "Yeah, and what about you?" A grin split his face in half, although there was something almost plaintive about it. "I feel like you'd be great with the ladies." Was that envy in his voice?

_Oh gosh._ Gary's heart sped up and he looked away. "I don't know if I'd say that." He murmured.

The smile faded from Stan's face. "Really? I mean... You're a good looking guy. No homo, it's just true."

Gary chuckled, his face reddening from the compliment. He really didn't like where this was going. "Well, I'm going to trust God to help me find the right person." He openly cringed at his wording. _Oh dang it! I should have said 'woman', not 'person'._

Stan did not seem convinced. "So you have girl problems?"

"You could say that," he tried to will away the color he knew was in his face as his hands played with the lapping water.

Stan stared at him for a few moments. "...I feel like you'd be good in a relationship. I don't see what the problem would be. Not enough Mormon chicks, or...?"

"Just drop it, Stan." Gary found himself saying, a bit harsher than he would have ever wanted. He looked up at Stan, his lips now a thin line and his eyes hard.

Stan was surprised, but he must have detected that something was awry, and said something that hit the nail right on the head.

"Why? It's not like you're gay or anything."

Gary's eyes widened and he blanched, staring at Stan like a deer in the headlights. His mouth opened and shut, before he finally managed to form words. "Nnnno! I'm... I like girls." He winced.

Stan stared at him, his mouth slightly parted, just staring and _staring_, until finally, a smirk spread over his face. "...Oh my God, no way."

"Really Stan," Gary's voice sounded desperate, like he was begging. "I'm straight." He wasn't sure who he was trying to convince.

"Gary Harrison the perfect Mormon is gay!" Stan laughed as though this were the richest thing he'd ever heard. "That's- that's awesome, dude."

"It's not awesome!" Gary argued. "And I'm not gay!"

Stan smiled wryly. "You brought me out here, to swim, almost naked with you, and we hugged. That's _real_ hetero, dude." His sarcasm almost physically pained Gary.

"Being gay is wrong, and I-I will not fall into temptation." Gary declared, his eyes almost determined.

Stan rolled his eyes. "See? This is why people hate Mormons. Because you think that the first people lived in Missouri, and you can't accept the fact that being gay makes everything better."

"You don't know anything about Mormonism," Gary practically snapped, allowing a little bit of his inhibitions to slip.

Stan sighed, almost exasperated. He waded forward, now looking directly into Gary's eyes, before he wrapped the boy in a hug. Gary went rigid, and he felt terribly guilty. _He_ was supposed to be the one put together, comforting a broken friend, but it appeared as though the tables had turned. Gary warmed at the touch, and tried with all his will not to give in.

"Gary," Stan breathed into his ear. "Stop trying to lie to yourself. Maybe you can pretend that there's someone up there in the sky - I don't care - but when it's something that actually hurts you, you shouldn't do it."

Gary's shoulders heaved. A part of him wanted so desperately to believe that Stan was right, but at the same time, he was so conflicted by the fact that all his life he'd been taught that gay is wrong, gay is wrong. Even Steve had proclaimed disgust at homosexuality - something about the fifth grade, but Gary's mind was mostly on how nice Stan's skin felt against his, like it really _wasn't_ a sin.

Stan pulled back. "Gary."

Gary avoided his eyes, pursing his lips as his shoulders scrunched.

"...Will you stay my friend?"

Gary looked up at him, finally. The question was as sincere as the look of honesty on Stan's face. Gary felt his heart speed up, and he was sure Stan could feel it, with their chests pressed together in the way that they were. "Of course..."

Stan sighed. "I-I don't want to keep living the way I have been. I don't want to be miserable anymore. I don't want to drink anymore, to not be able to throw things away. I want to get better."

Gary opened his mouth to say something, but Stan looked as though he was about to continue. He gazed into Gary's eyes earnestly, something yearning within those blue irises.

"I want us to get better together."

Gary felt compelled to tell Stan that there was nothing wrong with him - that he was fine, that he was straight - but he knew this was a lie. He knew that the problem was that he _wanted_ to be straight, but he wasn't. That he thought he should be, because it was just right. He'd known, all these years, that this was probably messed up - but he loved his religion, and he didn't want to lose that to some urges.

Stan's eyes were making him wonder if it was all worth it.

Stan leaned forward and placed a tiny kiss on Gary's cheek, which garnered a gasp from the confused boy. Stan pressed another small kiss to his face when no rejection transpired, and then another, and another, and Gary let it happen, the insides of his chest fluttering as all he could feel was increasing giddiness. Why did it feel so nice, to be showered with kisses from another man?

"Stan," Gary keened out.

Stan sighed into his cheek as he kissed the corner of Gary's mouth, and then fully on the lips. When he pulled away, Gary was even more on edge.

"I-I want to be happy, but I'm scared." He admit.

Stan rubbed his hand down Gary's arm, before he pulled him out of the water. "Let's go dry off. We're going to become prunes."

There was momentary silence as they did just that, and when they'd gotten back into their clothes and sat in the front seats of Gary's Prius, they just stared into open space. For once in his life, Gary couldn't think of a single thing to say. He eventually started the car, and they turned around somewhere, before heading back on their way. They drove around aimlessly for a bit, just driving around Orlando until Stan finally spoke up.

"Do you want to come home with me?" He murmured. "I... Just want someone to talk to while I try to clean up."

Gary glanced over at him. "You're serious about getting better, aren't you?"

Stan nodded. "After today? Yeah. And I..." He trailed off, fumbling with the glovebox. "I want us to find out how to be happy. Both of us."

The word _together_ lingered in Gary's mind, even if unspoken, and he clutched the steering wheel a bit harder.

"Okay, Stan." He murmured. "I'll - I'll give it a try."

With that, the first seeds of self acceptance were planted, with many blossoms to come in the future.

* * *

**The end! I was originally going to make this a smut ****fic, but I realized that Gary's self denial was a bit too much for that to realistically occur. So I decided to end it with, yayyy, emotional progress for both characters.**

**This was pretty lengthy, considering how bland the content is, and I apologize for that. I hope you enjoyed regardless.**


End file.
